As a Muslim kid growing up in the suburbs of Chicago in the 1990s, I had a really strong interest in astronomy. That's because my holidays off from school, which are the greatest reprieve for any child, followed a lunar cycle.

Public schools in Montgomery Country, Maryland, recently ended all religious holidays — at least in name — rather than adding Muslim ones to the school calendar. But is the practice of giving religious holidays off in public schools even legal in the first place?

Public schools in Montgomery Country, Maryland, recently ended all religious holidays — at least in name — rather than adding Muslim ones to the school calendar. But is the practice of giving religious holidays off in public schools even legal in the first place?

As a Muslim kid growing up in the suburbs of Chicago in the 1990s, I had a really strong interest in astronomy. That's because my holidays off from school, which are the greatest reprieve for any child, followed a lunar cycle.